EVERY FAMILY HAS ITS SECRETS 

In the affluent Long Island suburb of Centerport, Peggy Lynch struggles to hold her family together while balancing two jobs, an absent husband, and the emotional weight of raising five children — including her troubled youngest son, Johnny.

Years later, Peggy’s daughter Veronica returns to her childhood home with her husband and infant twins, hoping for a fresh start after her mother’s death. Instead, she uncovers a letter left behind by Peggy — a letter filled with long-buried truths, family secrets, and painful memories Veronica has spent years trying to escape.

As Veronica revisits the turbulent world of her childhood, she is forced to confront the complicated bonds between mothers and daughters, siblings shaped by trauma, and the lasting scars left by addiction and silence.

Set against the backdrop of Long Island’s North Shore, Johnny Be Good is an emotionally layered novel about family loyalty, forgiveness, and the ways love can both wound and heal.

• Complex mother-daughter relationships
• Irish-American family dynamics
• Family trauma
• Long Island family life
• Secrets across generations
• Book club–worthy emotional fiction
• Women’s fiction with literary depth

“Somehow, Bernadette Walsh always seems to rip my heart out. Yet, I always come back for more.”

“There are not many books that I read twice. This was one of them.”

Readers praise the novel for its emotional honesty, complicated family relationships, and vivid portrait of working-class Irish-American life on Long Island.

Fans of emotionally rich women’s fiction by Mary Beth Keane, Alice McDermott, and Ann Napolitano will connect with the multigenerational family drama and emotional depth of Johnny Be Good.

• How does Veronica’s understanding of her mother change throughout the novel?
• In what ways does Johnny shape the emotional life of the entire family?
• How do guilt and obligation influence the characters’ choices?
• What role does place — especially Long Island — play in the story?
• Can family members ever fully escape the roles assigned to them in childhood?

Genre: Women’s Fiction / Family Drama
Setting: Long Island, New York
Themes: Family secrets, motherhood, Irish-American identity, trauma, forgiveness

Available in paperback and ebook editions.

If you enjoyed Mary Beth Keane's exploration of the Irish-American experience  & the intricacies of long-term marriages in Ask Again, Yes then you will enjoy Johnny Be Good. 

Amazon: https://a.co/d/0f7xq3y9

AVAILABLE ON KINDLE UNLIMITED

READ A SAMPLE NOW: https://read.amazon.com/kp/card?asin=B07VXJJ4YL&preview=inline&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_6H0DXCGJ8Y7NB27PGHR8" 

REVIEWS: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50025550-johnny-be-good">